More recently, probably a wireless handheld controller for my model railway.

Model railway is a hobby for people with lots of time, space, and money. I generally fall short on two of those, although lately there is a bit more disposable income to go around. Last year I was able to splurge on the control setup that I always wanted, which is a stationary controller - basically you sit at a table and control the trains with two rotary controllers and a touchscreen for a number of other things. Looks a bit like this.

But since it’s stationary and my layout is fairly big, sometimes it can be a bit cumbersome to test something that’s five metres away. So I decided to also splurge on the matching wireless handheld controller, an Android-based device with another rotary controller and the ability to control almost all aspects of the stationary device.

Did I need it? Hell no. If I had waited a few more months, a perfectly suitable free smartphone app would have been available that I could have used for the purposes intended. But am I loving it? Fuck yes. Irresponsible to boot, but no regrets, not for one second.

I bought some googly eyes, and I keep them in a baggie in my pocket wherever I go. I have not used any yet, however the very thought is immensely riveting.

My dog

My Triumph Street Triple R (when it works).

After taxes, insurance, and service it cost me $5000, but when I twist that throttle and hear that screaming inline-3 at 11000rpm pulling harder than a V8 mustang, its intoxicating and I forget my worries, if only for a moment.

Almost 800 bucks on a Flair 58. I already had a decked out coffee setup but I couldn’t resist. Now it’s my go to machine.